Ten RRSP Myths and Facts

We've prepared a listing of the top
ten RRSP myths and facts. These include handy tips about
carryforwards, what you can contribute when you are 69, and how to make a
contribution, even if you don't have cash on hand.

RRSP Reminder

Please remember that March 3rd is the last day for RRSP contributions.
However, you don't need to make an investment decision right now. You can always make your
contribution and park it in a T-bill or other guaranteed investment until you've had a chance to review our
recommendations for your account.

Please note that contributions received
on March 3rd will not appear on your February month end statement.
However all RRSP tax receipts will be in the mail by the second week of March.

Recommended Reading

If you are wondering what our economists are predicting
for the global economy please see Scotiabank
Economist Warren Jestin's Global Forecast. Like most of the fund
manager commentaries we have seen, Canada is predicted to have the best
growth of the G7, however the risks of the potential war in Iraq are a
real threat to the global economy. At present, exactly half the market players think that markets
will go down from here, and half think that markets will rise. (The
market always settles at prices where half are buying, and half are
selling.) A balanced portfolio is recommended, as this will help to
provide stability, and still offer the opportunity to regain any losses
incurred in the recent downturn.

Fund Profile - Synergy Canadian Style
Management

This fund was introduced into our recommended list four
years ago, when it became apparent to us that the growing divergence
between value and growth management styles was adding undue risk to
clients who focused on only one management style. The chart below
shows the tremendous divergence of these styles since 1998, and thus the
importance of style diversification.

We originally suggested the Synergy Canadian Style
Management fund as a lower risk way to
own the whole index. See our commentary on Index
Funds and market risk. While the fund has a higher management fee than index funds,
the active management, lead by Dave Picton has lead to above average
returns (even after fees), with lower risk. This higher return,
lower risk profile is essentially the kind of investment fund that everyone
desires. Their individual style funds are a good complement to any
portfolio that is heavily weighted in either value or growth stocks.

Morningstar recently reviewed the 5 year performance of
Synergy's core lineup of 5 Canadian funds (see
Morninstar article link), all of which have outperformed the TSE over the same
period. (Granted, GICs beat the TSE over the last 5 years too, but
at today's rates they won't have the long term growth potential that this fund offers.)

Staff Profile - Allan McGlade CLU, CFP

Now in his sixth year with our team, many of you will
know that Allan McGlade is our specialist on financial planning.
From retirement projections and estate planning to insurance reviews,
Allan is extremely knowledgeable about matters of wealth creation and
preservation.

Allan holds a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation
and has completed the Financial Planning Standards Council (CFP) qualification exam.

Allan has 20 years of experience in the financial services industry.
You can always contact Allan directly at (416) 862-3066 or via e-mail
at allan.mcglade@scotiawealth.com
with questions about your individual situation.

For more information about the rest of your investment team, please visit the About Us
section of the website.

Fund News - Scotia Funds saving trees and
mailing costs

Scotia Securities has received regulatory approval to send annual financial reports only to customers that request them.
This should save the funds and their unitholders more than one million dollars this year.

Scotia Securities is the first mutual fund manager in Canada to obtain
this relief from most Canadian securities regulators.

You may have
already received your mailing if you hold Scotia Mutual Funds. It is anticipated that many clients will choose not to receive the report, decreasing
the costs of producing, printing and distributing the reports - costs that are charged to the Funds and ultimately their unitholders.
We applaud this cost saving initiative.

With so much information available
online, we are hoping that more fund companies will follow this
example. If for no other reason than it will mean that if you
move in the future, it won't take 6 months until your mailing address is
updated at each fund company with which you hold investments.

Please contact
us if you have any questions about these funds or changes.

Canada Newswire is
the source for Canadian press releases. You can search for
information on a particular company or topic. A unique feature is
their email feature, where you can request that you receive an email
whenever there is news on a company in which you are interested. If you
work for a publicly traded company, we'd recommend being put on the list
for news about your employer, so you will be the first to know important news!

® Registered trademark of The Bank of Nova Scotia, used under licence. ™ Trademark of The Bank of Nova Scotia, used under licence. Scotia Wealth Management™ consists of a range of financial services provided by The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank®); The Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Company (Scotiatrust®); Private Investment Counsel, a service of 1832 Asset Management L.P.; 1832 Asset Management U.S. Inc.; Scotia Wealth Insurance Services Inc.; and ScotiaMcLeod®, a division of Scotia Capital Inc. ("SCI"). Wealth advisory and brokerage services are provided by ScotiaMcLeod, a division of SCI. Insurance services are provided by Scotia Wealth Insurance Services Inc., the insurance subsidiary of SCI. When discussing life insurance products, ScotiaMcLeod advisors are acting as Life Underwriters (Financial Security Advisors in Québec) representing Scotia Wealth Insurance Services Inc. SCI is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada.

The Spiess McGlade Team is a personal trade name of Carl Spiess and Allan McGlade.